Seireitou's Training
Seireitou's Training (訓練の霊塔, Kunren no Seireitō) is the collective term referring to the training regimens set forth by Seireitou Kawahiru in the process of training a disciple under the Senjukuha. Overview The name given to Seireitou's system of training that he uses on every one of his students has been named "Martial Arts Forging" (武道鍛造, Budō Tanzō). In Seireitou's belief, it matters not what sort of style or technique a person uses, whether they depend on physical capabilities, spell-casting, their sword, or other means, the martial arts is a system that applies to everything that is within one's power to do. Therefore, this is a training that can be tailored to any specialty without fail. Forging of the Body The Body Forge (肢体鍛える, Shitai Kitaeru) is normally the first stage of training, although it is done concurrently with the Mind Forge. Just as one forges a blade, the body is conditioned and manipulated through various situations in order to "forge" it to the desired level. Initial Skill Assessment In order to properly gauge the student's level, Seireitou will undergo an initial analysis of their current powers & abilities. While there are rare circumstances where Seireitou himself will engage the student in a spar to determine their skill level, he will often relay the duty to Saori Sumeragi. From this step, Seireitou will assume an accurate idea of a student's physical, spiritual, and mental standing before proceeding to actual training. Exhaustion of Physical Stamina The ground base of Seireitou's training regimen begins with forcing the student's body to lose all dependence on physical strength. This is accomplished by forcing the student to use up every ounch of their physical strength and stamina daily, until their body becomes adapted to relying on pure reiryoku in order to preform even the most simplistic motions such as walking, eating, or generally moving about. Depending on the strength level of the student, that will determine the standards at which Seireitou will design the cardio physical excercises. They range from rather basic work-outs that is commonly seen among Humans who train at a gym or a Karate dōjō (though done to an almost exaggerated degree), such as Minato Kuramoto at the start of his training, to complex and strenuous excercises meant only for those with the highest degree of physical stamina, such as Tome Kūgun. It is a training step meant to last several days while simultaneously allowing the body to build up on internal energy through the consumption of reiatsu-imbued food cooked by Saori, based on a similar principle developed by Kirio Hikifune, ideally making it so as the body loses hold on physical strength, spiritual energy from within takes the reigns and fuels the student's day-to-day movements. The point of this part of the training is to slowly allow the student's body to adapt to using spiritual energy to fuel its normal facilties rather than physical stamina, something that cannot be done through standard means. A student who is capable of passing beyond this step of training is said to eventually gain a footing in mastering the flow of their own spiritual energy. Externalization of Internal Reiryoku The next step of training deals in the student learning to utilize their internal reiryoku as a tool for any form of action, from the commonplace action of movement to actual combat, allowing them to fuel their physical attacks using their spiritual energy in lieu of physical brute force. physical strikes.]] As the student begins learning to forgo use of physical force for spiritual energy, they begin to notice their aura emitting from their physical strikes and/or sword attacks, as well as their entire body. This is a representation that as they are now using physical force and repeating the first step, they are simultaneously releasing an aura of spiritual energy, using up both reserves of power as they continue the training. During the training, students find that their strikes hold far more power and might behind them but drain their reserves at a far quicker rate. In particular, Hinata Kusuhana was shown to apply this to her form of Hakuda combat. By building up and releasing her reiryoku with precise timing, Hinata could easily decimate any obstacle and turn it to rubble. An opponent struck by her full strength could suffer from anything ranging from instant death, broken bones, ruptured organs, or any other wound associated with intense blunt force trauma. This is not an uncommon feat by those who have learned to utilize similar fighting styles. The goal of this training step is to allow the student to manage the use of spiritual energy in their strikes, allowing them to empower their physical attacks without wasting excess energy, overall allowing them to learn spiritual energy control in a practical method. In addition, by making their spirutual energy aid their physical strikes, they end up enhancing the quality of their reiryoku, meaning that they will need to use a smaller amount of their energy than they had originally needed in order to produce similar effects, such as requiring less reiryoku to use a particular Reijutsu than they would normally have required while it still would have the same amount of force and effect behind it. Regaining & Improvement of Physical Strength Resistance of the Elements An isolated part of the physical portion of training, this is a stage in which Seireitou trains the student's body to resist elemental factors. The most prominent of these conditioning exercises begins with learning to generate a field of reiatsu around them that will allow them to remain untouched by certain physical materials. After being capable of doing this, the student is then thrown into a volcano and expected to maintain the reiatsu field so as to avoid being burnt while adapting to the heat gradually. Eventually, they learn to slowly weaken the barrier until they manage to resist being touched directly by the magma. It becomes possible to force the students to condition their bodies against such heat so as to toughen their skin. Seireitou himself has demonstrated attempts at actually swimming in the magma when explaining the training exercise to the student, capable of resisting the heat as if it were second nature to him. This has been claimed to have led to the development of Seireitou's own Tiěshān technique. Forging of the Mind The Mind Forge (脳裏鍛える, Nōri Kitaeru) is typically the second stage of training, although it is done concurrently with the Body Forge. It is centered toward "forging" the mind and learning to utilize it to the utmost degree possible. Absolute Mental Focus In most cases, this step of the training happens to be the longest part of Seireitou's training process. As the term implies, the point of this training is for the student to master their minds and develop focus and mental stability/control. This will allow them to apply this mental control over to their fighting, allowing for their techniques and abilities to be greatly enhanced several times over. But it is also meant to allow them to apply their recently learnt ability of applying spiritual energy to their actions, now having them learn to use their minds to establish control over their energy and to master it. Forms of Jinzen (or rather meditation) are typically consulted during this step of training, the student undergoing these meditative practices in order to gain a sense of control over their mental faculties and spiritual energy; in essence, developing an absolute focus of themselves and their abilities. During this step, the student begins learning to gain a hold over releasing their internal reiryoku in their physical strikes from the previous stage of training, so as to prevent draining their power supply at rapid rates as they were beforehand. In doing so, their ability to conserve their strength and fight for longer periods of time is enhanced by a proportional amount to their gained focus. Unlike the other training steps, Seireitou employs this training through several, almost "random", trials that the student must overcome. Minato Kuramoto noted that many of them seemed silly, but the true intent behind the trial would eventually be realized, serving a greater purpose than originally believed. *'Game of Tag:' In order to display the overall purpose of the trial, Seireitou blindfolds himself and engages in a game of tag with his student. The student may attempt to run and hide in any way they wish, so long as they avoid Seireitou tagging them, which causes them to lose. As this eventually happens, the student is then blindfolded and must then tag Seireitou out. The main purpose of this trial is to force the student to track Seireitou's spiritual energy signature using their sixth sense, while completely abandoning the other four senses entirely; including hearing. However, the student will find it to be far harder a task if they allow any form of frustration to cloud their mental faculties. *'Mirror Doll:' Saori uses a special Reijutsu, combined with a special empty Reigai body, along with a hair from the student, to create an exact copy of them in doll form. The doll is completely and utterly the same as the original, but lacks emotion and does not speak nor reveal any form of facial expression. In essence, it represents the goal of the trial: to make the student completely focus and abandon emotions in order to completely delve into a singular mentality that would allow them to overcome even the greatest challenges. At first, the student almost feels as though the Reigai doll is actually stronger than them, but in reality, Seireitou explains that this is because the doll does not allow emotions or thoughts to distract it from the battle and its subsequent actions, which is the purpose of the trial. There really is no "completion" of this training step but rather will come to an end when Seireitou feels that the student has achieved a level of mental focus that is satisfactory. However, this is apparently proved through another spar that is either handled by Saori, Jihan Kanda, or Seireitou himself. Forging of the Soul After completing the Body Forge and Mind Forge training, one is ready to complete the final stage of Seireitou's training. The Soul Forge (魂鍛える, Tamashī Kitaeru) is only possible with a sound body and a sound mind, as together they produce a "true soul". However, the specifics of this training have yet to be seen or understood as no student of his has ever reached this level according to Seireitou. Teachings Hakuda Style Warrior Philosophy As both a mentor of the mind and of the body, Seireitou often imparts wisdom onto his students in the form of sayings and even stories. * "A tiger should always be wary of how a dragon dances." * "A dragon must never ignore what a tiger is willing to do in order to win." * "Like the rocks within the rapids. Has the rock ever feared? Has the rock ever considered avoiding? The only thing the rock does... is let the water flow around it." * "When you are truly burning with anger, calm your heart. When there is an opponent you must defeat, hide your emotions deep within yourself. Know the depths of your heart. If you fall into them, you could lose your life. In the continously unbroken stream of attacks and defenses, there are parts in one's defense that are not being consciously controlled. Those are the isolated strongholds known as the Korui. The blindspot." Special Training Jaekeon The Jaekeon (재건 (建て替え), Korean for "Reconstruction") is a special training that Seireitou had developed under particular circumstances. Nothing is truly known about it other than it involves a total "reconstruction", as the name implies, of the soul and the collective attributes of the individual undergoing the training. In addition, Seireitou claims that the Jaekeon training is capable of making an individual infinitely stronger; albeit, in pure theory. Behind the Scenes